


airwalk—that's you and me

by kusukiluv



Category: SK8 the Infinity (Anime)
Genre: Awkwardness, Comfort, Fluff, Kinda, Kissing, Love Confessions, M/M, Mutual Pining, Sick Character, langa misses reki, minor minor angst, sick reki, they stare at each other a lot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-07
Updated: 2021-03-07
Packaged: 2021-03-13 09:55:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,314
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29899362
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kusukiluv/pseuds/kusukiluv
Summary: when reki describes the feeling of the airwalk trick, langa can't help but compare it to his feelings for reki
Relationships: Hasegawa Langa/Kyan Reki
Comments: 4
Kudos: 108





	airwalk—that's you and me

**Author's Note:**

> currently in the middle of writing like ten fics all at once so i thought why not post a happy oneshot??? sk8 has made me very sad so i wrote up smth very happy bc we all need as much renga content as we can get sigh,, hope u enjoy !!

airwalk

/ɛːwɔːk/

_ verb _

a trick in which the skater holds the board and kicks out both feet while in the air.

* * *

it shouldn't feel this bad. maybe it's because he's been forced to depend on a certain redhead that without him, langa is struggling to focus on anything else.

he feels lost, he feels like he's been dumped in the middle of nowhere with only himself to rely on. it doesn't feel right. it doesn't feel right to be at school and  _ not _ see reki. langa's used to seeing his friend jump up and down in front of him, pass him notes in class and whisper jokes in his ear whilst the teacher isn't looking, used to eating lunch with him and breaking school rules with him. school with reki felt right. school without him? lonely. langa never really had a second to process how boring school actually was, what with reki animating and electrifying every dim aspect of their day. he never noticed how dull their classroom was, how monotonous the teacher sounded, or how difficult it was to find someone to sit next to at lunch.

so standing in the cafeteria, plastic bag of snacks in his hand, langa doesn't really know what he's supposed to do. everybody seems to be sitting in their own groups, already having a good time. there are the odd people sitting on their own, but langa can't find the strength inside him to strike up a conversation with a random student that he won't talk to ever again. he chews on his bottom lip, eyeing the cafeteria before he feels a hand on his shoulder.

it's stupid—it really is—but langa can't help his face light up at the thought of reki tapping on his shoulder.

"hey, hasegawa." it isn't reki, of course it isn't.  _ reki isn't here _ , langa has to remind himself, before he tugs up his lips into a forced smile at the unfamiliar figure in front of him. "why're you standing here so awkwardly? come sit with us," the boy pulled on his sleeve, the action making langa's brows furrow, before bringing him to his table.

langa is never one to oppose being touched, but the boy next to him—whose name he doesn't even know—is making him feel uncomfortable. he doesn't even know why, but with the way his arm's slung around his shoulder so casually, and the way he keeps hitting his chest has langa plunging down the urge to push him off.  _ he's being friendly _ , he has to tell himself, to stop himself from shoving the boy away from him and yelling that only reki can touch him like that. as embarrassing as that sounds.

his chest sinks at the thought of reki, before he glances at the wall to check the time, or is it to check how many hours he has left before he can see reki, who knows?

five more taunting hours…

"so, hasegawa, how come you were standing in the middle of the cafeteria like that? it was kinda weird," the boy sitting across him spurts out, along with some of his food. 

langa tries to think of an answer that isn't:  _ oh, reki's not in and i don't have anybody else to hang out with.  _ he chews on his food as he answers, gimmicking the mess of boys pooled around him. "i was looking for somewhere to sit," he shrugged, trying to seem nonchalant about the situation, "that's all."

"it's ‘cause reki isn't in, right?" a boy on his left shoots out, causing langa to choke on his bread. 

the boys start laughing, and langa's not sure whether they're laughing with him or at him. and langa's not sure whether he's supposed to join them.

"you're always hanging out with him," the boy with his arm wrapped around him in a death grasp, chokes out between snorts, "‘don't think i've ever seen you two apart." 

what's so funny about that? they're friends, all friends hang out with each other, right? langa can't wrap his head around why the boys are laughing, but he knows he doesn't like it. "yeah, we're friends," he shrugs, trying to push everyone off of the topic. reki's never made him feel uncomfortable—what was the problem with these guys?

* * *

they say there's a first for everything, langa would like to say this would be his first and last. getting out of class to ‘go to the toilet’ was normal, something he and reki had done countless times. but sneaking out to curl up on a toilet seat, pull out his phone and text reki? langa can't feel more embarrassed. he feels like a little school girl, someone who can't get her crush out of her head, someone who can't function without them, someone who–

"that's literally me.." he pouts, the realisation of how much reki means to him flashing before his eyes. 

_ you: _

_ hey _

it isn't even surprising that it only takes a minute for reki to reply.

_ reki<3: _

_ Heyyy _

_ Aren't you supposed to be in class right now? _

_ you: _

_ yeah _

_ i got bored so i thought i'd check up on you _

_ you feeling any better? _

_ reki<3: _

_ A little! _

_ Mum's been feeding me and giving me loads of medicine so don't worry about me _

_ It's just a cold Langa :) _

_ you: _

_ i know _

_ can i come over after school? _

_ reki<3: _

_ Not like you to ask XD _

_ you: _

_ is that a no? _

_ reki<3: _

_ No no!! _

_ You can come _

_ you: _

_ ok :) _

_ reki<3: _

_ Go back to class now Langa _

_ you: _

_ ok :( _

it's a meaningless conversation, yet reki's little texts and emoticons still locked a little smug on langa's face. 

* * *

langa sucks in a deep, refreshing whiff of air as he steps out of the school gates, finally feeling like he's stuck his head out from under the water. he can breathe. knowing that he can run to see reki, after not seeing him last night and all of today, makes langa feel like he can breathe freely. it's cheesy, it's embarrassing, it's something that he's never going to admit, but it's nice.

hurriedly, langa puts down his skateboard, jumps on it and kicks his way to reki's house. 

and to top off the corniness of it all, he just has to be wearing a toothy smile on the way there.

* * *

"reki!" langa tries his best not to throw himself at his friend, the sight of him igniting something in his chest. 

reki laughs, sending a way too familiar gush of serotonin through langa's body. "you're acting like we haven't seen each other for months."

_ it feels like it _ , he wants to say, but again—that'd be way too embarrassing. instead, he smiles, tilting his head. and of course, even if his eyes are bloodshot and almost carmine, even if he has to sniff every two seconds, even if he's paler than usual, reki returns the smile. it's beautiful, it always is. it always manages to brighten up langa's view and make his day because it's reki's smile he's looking at. langa knows that even if the world is collapsing around him, reki's smile would wash away all of his problems.

it's one of the million reasons he's developed such a big crush on him, after all.

"come in," reki sniffles, his voice groggy, "i got something to show you."

a flower blooms in langa's chest, heat rising to his cheeks as his friend gestures at him to step inside. the thought alone that even though reki's been sick, he's been thinking of langa, has the blue haired boy biting back an obvious grin.

"okay," he whispers back, letting out a breathy giggle. 

langa follows reki inside, finding comfort with the back of his friend's head since he hasn't been able to see him for what seems like forever. with a rehearsed smile on his face, he bids his hellos to reki's family which always seems to grow every time he visits. 

"what did you want to show me?" he asks, closing the door behind him as he slumps on reki's bed as though it's his own.

reki gives him a wiggle of his brows before he buries himself under his desk to search for what he wants.

langa, for what seems like the ten millionth time today, smiles to himself as he watches his friend—the simple gesture that he's done so many times still makes an unfamiliar feeling burst in langa's chest to this day. the blue haired boy snuggles his face into his friend's covers, smelling the familiar bounce of sandpaper and fruit juice. it's such a childish smell that reki carries around, that at first made langa's nose twitch. he remembers when he used to offer reki deodorant or cologne to soften his scent, but the latter always refused.  _ it's good that it's so strong!  _ he would yell,  _ makes it easier to find me! _

"here!" reki pulls out a pile of old and crippled pieces of papers, scuttles to his bed, takes a few wheezy breaths and stares at them like they hold the world.

and when langa looks at them, he can see why.

"woah..when did you draw these?" 

"about eight-ish months ago."

langa giggles, his arm brushing reki's—the drawings look like children's doodles, and the redhead only did these a few months ago? "they're really bad."

"oi!" reki gives him a dig of his elbow before falling into a fit of giggles too as they both look at the awful drawings of skating positions laying on the bed in front of them.

they're cute—so cute, and they just  _ scream  _ reki. what with the bursts of colour, the little annotations in scruffy handwriting (similar to the way he writes when he sneaks langa a note in class), the messy mini sketches, the funny facial expressions on the figures. it's just so cute.

"i drew them to learn some tricks, i saw that visualising what you wanna do helps." probably unintentionally (but langa would like to believe that it is) reki's arm presses firmly against langa's, his body heat both radiating and softening the latter. it's a small act, but he can't help the blush creeping onto his pale cheeks at their contact.

"did it help?" he asks nonchalantly, trying to hide the welling in his chest. just like he always does whenever reki touches him.

reki laughs loudly, "no, but it was fun to draw them."

"why did you want me to see them, then?"

"figured your big brain would find these useful," he lets out between scratchy coughs.

langa notices, of course he does, and gives his friend a worried look. "are you okay?"

"i'm fine, i'm fine, i just wanted to show you this trick." his voice is grating, cacophonic even, and reki's projecting how uncomfortable he feels through his furrowed brows and pouty lips. 

"you shouldn't speak too much, your throat hurts, right?" langa's hand flies to his friend's back once he starts choking out coughs. reki's never been like this—sick, tired, worn out, uncomfortable,  _ vulnerable _ . it leaves a nasty taste on langa's tongue as he watches his friend struggle to catch his own breath. "it's okay, you've written enough on here for me to learn, reki." he offers a smile, not really knowing what else could cool reki's clashing throat.

and of course, even through hacks and rasps, reki returns the smile. he always does, and it's always ten times brighter than langa's. 

langa wishes he could smile like that, like his smile holds the colours of the sun.

"but how–" 

"nope, no speaking." his hand is clasped around reki's—the brush of his lips a lot softer than langa had imagined them to be. 

"this is ridiculous," he muffles through langa's, his voice coming out all grumbly. the blue haired simply laughs before he goes to inspect the paper, the image of his size difference between his palm and reki's lower half of his face playing over and over in his head.

"this looks easy. i just go up, hold onto the board and kick my feet up? i'm pretty sure i've already done that."

"well, if you would let me speak…" 

* * *

langa's flying. he's always flying. reki's always watching him fly. he loves jumping up and down, cheering him on, giving him high fives or a pat on the back whenever he watches him fly. but he's sick. and langa is, very annoyingly, being persistent about him not being allowed to use his voice. 

what else can he do? smile?

but a smile seems to be enough, it seems to spread langa's wings further and thrust him higher into the air. reki doesn't know how or why his smile is working, he doesn't even let his mind linger on it for too long because langa is  _ flying _ .

watching langa fly is like watching a butterfly come out from its cocoon, or a baby bird spread its wings and jump from its nest—only they do it again and again, and each time just happens to be better than the previous one. reki remembers when langa used to gape at him, when his pupils were blown, when his jaw hung low, when his eyes held admiration for him. it's funny how things turn around, isn't it? reki's the one who's elated now. he didn't like it at first, didn't like how the tables turned and how their positions flipped, but he's learned to appreciate it and take motivation from it rather than envy.

"did you see that?!" langa shouts, and reki has to stop himself from laughing.

of course he saw it.

reki nods enthusiastically (he thinks it's an enthusiastic nod, anyway) and flashes langa a toothy grin and a thumbs up, before wrapping himself in his blanket to keep himself from freezing to death. 

langa pants and slouches next to reki, unconsciously letting his head just about rest on reki's lap. just about. but it's still enough to make reki's body temperature increase by just a little. just a little. 

peering up through his lashy lids, langa looks at reki. "that was a lot harder than i thought it'd be," he said between pants. with the way his chest is heaving up and down, reki has to bite down a gulp, the action spurring something at the pit of his stomach—something he always chooses to ignore. 

"yeah." by instinct (that's what he likes to call it) reki darts out his hand from his blanket and twirls a string of langa's hair between his fingers. it's soft, it's well taken care of, it shimmers in the afternoon sun; it's very langa-like. "you're used to keeping your feet on the board, aren't you?" langa's eyes, just like his well-conditioned hair, are glimmering. they remind reki of when he has to wipe the marble countertops, and he can see his reflection afterwards. it's times like these he wishes he could just press pause, and let everything around him sink in. 

"yeah, i guess. no offence, but i don't think i'd do that again. it does look cool, though." 

reki doesn't prod at langa that he didn't tell him off for speaking, because even if his throat is burning, he'd never stop talking to langa.  his love language isn't verbal for nothing . "airwalk is one of the simple, but coolest tricks. what are you talking about?"

langa furrows his brows, signalling for reki to continue.

"when you're riding up," reki sniffles and clears his throat, preparing for his speech, "and all that air is hitting your face, it feels refreshing doesn't it? and when you're edging closer to the top, the anticipation of whether you can make it or not is the only thing you can think about. and when your hands hold onto the front of your board and you lift it, kicking your legs in the air like you don't have a care for the world: the feeling it's just so– so–  _ amazing _ ."

langa's got that look on his face again, the same look he had when he first fell in love with skateboarding. his hand's on his heart again, something he always does whenever he's skating. his eyes are big and round, his mouth is hung open—he's got  _ that  _ look. the look that pushed reki to teach him even more, that inspired him to work his best, that made him want langa to be at his prime. 

"airwalk. that feeling you described…" langa mumbles.

"hm?" reki's thumbing langa's scalp now, his fingers are coiled in his hair. 

"it's– it's nothing."

it's not nothing, reki can tell. he can tell because langa's cheeks are crimson, and he's pouting. 

"it's okay," reki whispers, softening his expression, "you can tell me."

langa sits up, and reki doesn't even get a chance to comprehend what's going on. his heart is pounding,  ~~ he doesn't know why ~~ , his body temperature is rising,  ~~ he doesn't know why ~~ , his palms are becoming sweatier by the second,  ~~ he's starting to get why ~~ . langa's face is way too way too close to his, his hands are pressed against the floor on either side of reki's lap. they've been close before, they've hugged before, they've even slept on top of each other before.

but something inside of reki is telling him that this is very very different.

"the way you described the airwalk," langa starts, and his voice is slow, it's drawling, he's scared to say what he wants to say. "it sounds familiar."

"yeah?" reki gulps down the urge to run away and pretend that none of this is happening.

langa nods, and his face only comes closer, driving reki insane. "that's how i feel..when i.."

he can't say it. he won't say it. langa's always struggled to say what he's wanted to say, he's never been one to voice his thoughts so effortlessly. and reki laughs, because usually he'd be able to. he should be wrapping his arms around langa's neck right about now, smiling widely and having the time of his life. but he's struggling too.

he never imagined this to be so.. awkward

"langa," he chuckles, and pushes langa's chest away to give him some space to breathe, "you're being weird."

_ no no no no  _ — that is not what he wanted to say. reki sees the disheartenment in langa's crystalline eyes, but he can't bring himself to do or say anything about it.

"reki.." his voice drawls, but this time there's no fear or uncertainty. this time it's a plea. he's asking reki to hear him out, and who is he to say no?

"the airwalk. that feeling. that's how i feel when..that's how i  _ felt _ when i saw you after not seeing you for awhile."

reki sucks in a deep breath, letting the oxygen wash out all of his worry.

"that's how i feel when i'm skating with you."

reki leans forward and fists the bottom of langa's shirt.

"that's how i feel when you laugh."

reki looks into langa's eyes, and offers him a smile. because he knows that to langa, a smile means a thousand words.

"that's how i feel when i'm with you."

reki let's his forehead rest on langa's. he's so beautiful; his skin is so bright, his eyes are so magical, his cheeks are so adorable and pinchable. 

"me too."

langa's brows shoot up in surprise, and reki tries not to ponder on why that was shocking for too long and instead uses that opportunity to latch his lips into his. and of course, langa's lips are sweet. of course they taste of honey and chia seed pudding. they move slowly, neither of them not really knowing what to do. but it's relishing, euphoric and exciting. reki's heard stories of having a first kiss but this—this was so much nicer than any of them. 

he could get used to this.

**Author's Note:**

> this is sooooo messy bye


End file.
